Not targeted at anyone in particular, don't get me wrong, but I find it curious that the opinion here seems to be that 2mm difference in tyre width makes an aerodynamic difference, while riding 10m behind a motorbike at around 50kph does not.

Not saying the chasers would have made it, you never know, just like arguing an aero frame decided a tight sprint finish.

An aero frame in a sprint would make a difference if for instance everyone took the same route and all factors/routes were consistent.

No two approaches to the finish are remotely similar in a sprint. Everyone has their own path.

It's a tech blog and we tend to nerd out a bit but the difference between a win and a loss will always be skill, handling, preparation, lead up, experience, and human effort

Forgive me if I'm wrong but if a team misjudges a lead-out slightly and loses by 1mm, that's not the bike's fault.

Stannard is, and always has been an opportunist, IMO. His position in Sky encourages this. He saw his chance and took it when others did not. Impossible to say if someone else would have made it work when he launched, but no one else chose that exact instance. That was their mistake.

They could have had a very, very marginal advantage from the draft, but an organized peloton is still faster than a small group. You have to be pretty damn close to a car or moto to get a very beneficial draft and from that shot they are pretty damn far away. I mean, anyone that has ridden in a pack with other riders or raced has at least once been in a situation where there was a gap of the same size that they just couldn't close. Even though the rider is 10 feet in front the draft isn't reducing the power enough to let you latch on. This is an essential skill you learn when you first race in a pack so that you don't get gapped or accidentally gap those behind you.

It sounds like they rode better, the chase wasn't too coordinated, and they were smart about using the course to their advantage.

_________________I never took drugs to improve my performance at any time. I will be willing to stick my finger into a polygraph test if anyone with big media pull wants to take issue. If you buy a signed poster now it will not be tarnished later. --Graeme Obree

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